Track & Field - Malone men finished seventh (among 62 teams scoring points) at the NAIA Outdoor National Championships in Louisville, Kentucky May 26-28, Malone women finished 20th (among 57 teams); Dave Gramlich won the marathon as seven total All-America honors were achieved by Malone athletes (4 men, 3 women)

 

Men's Golf - Malone finished 18th among 27 teams at the NAIA National Championships in Olathe, Kansas May 24-27

 

 

     The Malone College men's track & field team posted an impressive seventh-place finish among 62 teams scoring points at the NAIA Outdoor National Championships in Louisville, Kentucky last Thursday through Saturday.  The Pioneers tallied 29 points as Dickinson State (ND) University won the men's team championship with 99 points.

     The Malone women finished in a tie for 20th place (among 57 teams scoring points) with 16 points as Simon Fraser (B.C.) University won the women's team title with 79.5 points.
     A total of seven Malone All-American honors were captured by Pioneer athletes (four men, three women) as Dave Gramlich (Sr., Cuyahoga Falls H.S.) led the way with two All-America accolades, including an individual national title in the marathon with a time of 2:25.34.  He became the 19th Malone men's track & field athlete to win an individual national title.  Gramlich also earned All-America honors in the 10,000 meters with a fourth-place finish in a time of 30:36.68.
     Ray Weisenbarger (Jr., Troy Christian H.S.) picked up an All-America award in the discus as he finished fourth with a throw of 167' 10".  Leo Kormanik (Jr., Akron Ellet H.S.) was the other Malone men's athlete to earn All-America honors as he placed fifth in the 5,000 meters in 14:57.36.  Kormanik also competed in the 10,000 meters and finished eighth in 31:26.28.
     Several other Malone men came close to All-America recognition (top six in an event).  Curtis Mortenson (Jr., Kodiak, AK) placed seventh in the marathon (2:29.52) while Bryan Straniero (Jr., Berkshire H.S.) took eighth in the event (2:30.37).
     In the 5,000-meter race walk, Brad Sinick (So., Field H.S.) and Nate Hughes (So., Worthington Christian H.S.) finished eighth and ninth, respectively, in times of 30:51.85 and 35:32.25.
     Brady West (So., West Muskingum H.S.) competed in the decathlon and placed 11th overall with 6012 points.  The event in which he tallied the most points was the 400-meter dash in which posted a time of 52.21 seconds and scored 716 points.
     Ryan Kienzle (Fr., GlenOak H.S.) competed in the 5,000 meters but did not make the finals as he posted a time of 15:07.33.  Justin Baum (Fr., Kenston H.S.) competed in the 10,000 meters and finished 26th in 33:38.29.
     For the Malone women, Lindsey Hipp (Jr., Amherst H.S.) led the way with a second-place finish in the 3,000-meter race walk in a time of 15:32.02 for All-America honors.  Ashley Thomas (Jr., Anchorage, AK) also earned All-America accolades in the event by placing fifth in 16:35.31.  The other All-America recipient for the Malone women was Joanna Genter (So., Crestview H.S.) who placed fifth in the finals of the 3000-meter steeplechase in a time of 10:53.33.
     Brittani Lyons (So., Elizabeth City, NC) also competed in the 3,000-meter race walk and finished ninth in a time of 18:24.59. 
     Brooke Gasser (Fr., Norwayne H.S.) competed in the javelin and placed 15th with a toss of 127' 9" and she also competed in the heptathlon and finished 14th overall with 4343 points.  Her best event was the 200-meter dash in which he tallied 793 points with a time of 26.05 seconds.
     Sarah Decker (Sr., Pandora Gilboa H.S.) finished 16th in the 10,000 meters in a time of 39:11.58 and she also competed in the 5,000 meters but did not qualify for the finals after posting a time of 18:23.73 in the prelims.  Amy Arnold (Jr., CVCA) also competed in the 5,000 meters prelims and did not make the finals with a time of 18:25.58.

     Carrie Hart (So., LaBrae H.S.) ran the 10,000 meters and finished 20th in 39:30.55 while Laura Boatwright (Sr., Berkshire H.S.) competed in the marathon and placed 20th in 3:46.30.  Brittany Davies (So., Cedarville H.S.) ran in the 800-meter event and posted a time of 2:17.76 but did not qualify for the finals.
     The Malone women's 4x800-meter relay team of Kristina Barrett (Jr., Licking Valley H.S.), Laura McElrath (Fr., Tallmadge H.S.), Caity Schneider (So., Sandy Valley H.S.) and Loren Reineke (So., Anna H.S.) recorded a time of 10:07.95 in the prelims but did not advance.
     NAIA All-America Scholar Athletes:  Leo Kormanik and Curtis Mortenson were each named as NAIA All-America Scholar Athletes for the Pioneer men while Sarah Decker, Ashley Thomas, Brittani Lyons, Amy Arnold and Lacy Watkins (So., Lockport, NY) represented the Malone women as NAIA All-America Scholar Athletes.
     SPECIAL NOTE:  At the NAIA Outdoor National Championships Banquet, former Malone student-athlete and 2004 Olympic Gold Medalist in the Pole Vault (in Athens, Greece) Tim Mack was inducted into the NAIA Hall of Fame.  Malone cross country head coach Jack Hazen was Mack's presenter at the event.
    

 

     The Malone College men's golf team, led by veteran head coach Ken Hyland, finished in 18th place among a 27-team field at the NAIA National Championships in Olathe, Kansas May 24-27.  At the par-72 Prairie Highlands Golf Course, Malone finished in 18th place after posting a three-day score of 918 (+54).  The 27-team field was trimmed to 17 after the third round and Malone narrowly missed this cut, by just two strokes, and did not compete in the fourth and final round.
     Malone fired a 300 on day one and was in eighth place before posting a 314 on day two, which dropped the Pioneers into a three-way tie for 17th.  Then, on day three, a score of 304 wasn't quite good enough to make the cut as the Pioneers fell to 18th.  Johnson & Wales University (FL) easily won the team championship with a score of 1133, which was an incredible 19 under par.  Oklahoma Christian University was second with a score of 1161 while four-time defending champion Oklahoma City University came in third at 1162.
     Leading the way for Malone was Keith Cunningham (Sr., John Glenn H.S.) who fired rounds of 74, 78 and 74 for a 226 total (+10).  Cunningham narrowly missed the individual cut (top 40 individuals after day three) by just one stroke but was still named as an NAIA All-America Honorable Mention at the conclusion of the event.
     Matt Wabby (Sr., Pittsburgh, PA) was three shots behind Cunningham at 229 (75-78-76) while Jordan Grubb (So., Lake H.S.) followed with a 230 (74-80-76).  Scotty Jones (So., East Palestine H.S.), who tallied rounds of 77, 82 and 78, and Aaron Strauch (Jr., Emporium, PA), who carded rounds of 77, 78 and 82, both finished with a total of 237 (+21).
     NAIA All-America Scholar Athletes:  Matt Wabby and Jeff Butler (Sr., Centerburg H.S.) were each selected as NAIA All-America Scholar Athletes.